Torn Apart
by Nymphadora
Summary: Ron has been missing for four years, and Hermione has been waiting for him to come back to her. They have a daughter, who never knew him. RWHG & HPGW
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Oh come on, people, if I could write as well as J.K., I would be getting paid for this.

Please R&R!

Broken Apart

It had been four years since Ronald Weasley's mysterious disappearance. They had only been married a few days when the Death Eater attack had ripped their lives apart. At least there was still hope. They had taken him alive, and that was what had kept Hermione going on, that and the surprising blessing that had been bestowed upon her just weeks after her husband had been taken from her side. Since she was a child, there hadn't been a day that she hadn't seen his smile, his deep blue eyes that sparkled with laughter and fire. Then one day, he was gone. But the gods had not been entirely cruel. She still saw those eyes every day, and flashes of his adorable half smile, just in someone else. Their little girl would be turning three soon, another year. Hermione wished that Ron could've seen her grow. His family had been there every step of the way, Mrs. Weasley fussing constantly, worrying about every little detail. Evelyn Hope Weasley. She looked so like her father. The trademark red hair and freckles were more vibrant every day. She did have her mother's curls, a much tamer version, it seemed, but they were there all the same.

Hermione had passed the time very poorly. She spent much of her time in the window box of their small garden cottage. When she could no longer gaze longingly down the cobblestone road, hoping to see a flash of disshevelled red hair, she would read, and sometimes work in her garden. She had been reading to Evvy more and more. The little girl shared her mother's love of the written word. However, while Evvy found adventure and discovery, Hermione found escape. She wished that she could know that Ron was alright, but Mrs. Weasley's magic clock had stopped working long ago, though it still hung on the wall where it always had. Books remained her only solace in a world that never ceased to remind her of what she had lost.

Her mind drifted to Harry. They hadn't spoken much lately. He was still off nobely saving the world from everthing from papercuts to earthquakes. Hermione couldn't look him in the eye, not while Ginny waited patiently for him to see that by not being with him, she lived in more pain than any Death Eater could inflict. He stood for everything Hermione had lost. Harry had a love like Hermione had had with Ron, and he threw it away because of fear. He had been searching for the sixth Horcrux for two years now, unable to put his finger on what it might be. In Hermione's mind, by not living his life, he was letting Voldemort kill him a little at a time. She couldn't bear to see Ginny's heart break more every day. It wasn't fair what Harry was doing to her. It was strange, if you had asked Hermione years ago, she would have stood ferociously be Harry's decision. But that was before she knew what it was to love someone that much and not be able to be with them because of Voldemort. Harry was still good to Hermione. He had tried searching for Ron, but it was no use. Harry had never stopped being a good friend, Hermione just wanted to him to see how much Ginny needed him, and whether or not he wanted to admit it, how much he needed her too.

Hermione put it out of mind. She was going to be late. She was due for tea with Ron's family in ten minutes. She walked quickly to Evelyn's room. She was sitting on her bed drawing. Hermione smiled.

"What are you coloring, sweetheart?" She asked her daughter.

"I'm making a picture for Daddy." She replied nonchalantly. Hermione sighed.

"Evvy, we don't know when Daddy will be back...come on love. We'll be late for tea."

Hermione hated to have to be honest, but she didn't want her to get her hopes up. She couldn't stand the thought of her being disappointed.

"But I have to finish it, Mummy. I have to finish it before he gets back. I had a dream about him last. He told me he's coming home." Evvy's eyes started to well up. For a small child, she certainly could get her point across, and quite heartbreaakingly at that.

Hermione took her hand and led her silently to the fireplace. She picked her up, and threw a handful of Floo Powder into the grates.

"The Burrow" she said as clearly as she could.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. II

Ginny Weasley held her wand in her hands, rolling it between her fingers, seriously considering going through with what she had been contemplating since Harry broke her heart over four years ago. She slid the tip of the wand past a lock of her long, red hair. This was it, just two little words and she would never again have to look into those piercingly beautiful green eyes, knowing that the man behind them would never be her's. She remembered the good things, the first time she heard of Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. He was like a superhero from one of her daddy's Muggle comics. Then, one day, he became real, and he didn't look grand or powerful. He looked lost and alone, and right then Ginny promised herself that whatever happened, she would take care of him, never let him feel alone again. She had loved him all her life, first as a hero, an idol, then, later she loved him as her first crush, and finally, when he returned her feelings, as the man she gave her whole heart to. She remembered the day he kissed her in front of everyone, and the night they had told no one about. She was glad it had been him. No other guy was man enough for her, not Michael or Dean or anyone else, just Harry. And if she couldn't have him, there was no reason for her to pull him down. Harry was important, he had a job to do, and Ginny's depression was only making his life more difficult, and nothing ws going to make this pain go away, at least nothing Harry was ever going to be able to give her.

Ginny held her breath to steal herself. She bit her lip and tightened her grip on her wand for the last time.

"I love you Harry Potter. Avada Ked--"

"Ginny, no!" she felt her wand fly out of her hand. Her older brother Fred stood in the door, aghast, his mouth hanging open and a tear running down his cheek. He ran to her and held her close. "Gin...baby, what the hell did you think you were doing? C'mon, we're taking you to see someone." He led her out of the room, his arm around her shoulders. Ginny had never seen Fred cry this openly before.

"You aren't going to tell Mum, are you?" she asked cautiously. Fred looked over at her with a new fire in his eyes.

"You're kidding, right? What the bloody fuck did you think, that she'd come home from the market and not notice your lifeless body sprawled out in the parlor? We love you, Ginny, and so does Harry, luv...he just doesn't want you to get hurt, you know that. Be patient with him, he has a heavier burden to carry." Fred said loudly, still crying. Ginny felt herself losing control.

"He doesn't have to watch the person he loves most in the world risk their life to save everyone else! I love him, Fred, more than I can describe or explain. Life isn't worth living to me if I have to watch him face this alone."

"If you love him all that much, then don't murder the woman he wants to spend his life with. He loves you, he always has." Fred said soberly.

"How long do I have to wait? Since Ron... disappeared, I can't stand to think that I might lose him like Hermione lost Ron. But, the thing is, at least Hermione still has a part of him with her. All I'd have of Harry are memories..." Ginny sobbed.

"You might not have as long to wait as you think, Gin. Alright, I won't tell anyone, but, please, don't try anything that stupid ever again, I couldn't bear losing more family, especially you, you're the baby...and we have to take care of you." Fred hugged her closer. "After Hermione and Evvy leave, we go to McGonagall. You need to talk"

"Why her?" Ginny asked defensively. The last person she wanted to discuss her feelings with was Minerva McGonagall.

"Because, she knows more about this than you think. You know, Harry has to talk about his problems too..." Fred almost smiled. Ginny understood. Green flames appeared in the fireplace.

"Fine...oh, and Fred?" she said as she broke away to greet her sister-in-law and little niece.

"What?" he asked. Ginny forced a smile.

"Thanks for everything. I love you too." She said, before turning to face the fireplace, which held someone who definitely was not Hermione.

THE END... just kidding. :) Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! I love you all!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter3

Harry Potter had spent the majority of his life saving nd protecting other people. He had sacrificed his childhood, his innocence, and his relationship with his one true love. He had been in love with Ginny Weasley for many years now, since the Department of Mysteries, to be exact. She was so strong, so vibrant in battle. But, that made it difficut for Harry, because he loved her, she meant more to him than anyone else out there, and that wasn't fair to the millions of people counting on him to save them. A nagging voice in his head kept telling him that it was a little less fair for the weight of the world to be put on the shoulders of one man, and he was barely even that. He should be able to have a life too. He always pushed this thought aside. He wasn't born to live, or to love. Harry Potter was born to die for the world. He had figured it out long ago. He kept saying that he would find the sixth Horcrux and destroy it just like the others, but that was a lie. He knew exactly where to find it, and this one would be nothing like the others. This one would be suicide. It made perfect sense, his dreams, his scar hurting when Voldemort was especially active. It was a brilliant defense, putting a part of yourself in your arch nemesis. With every Horcrux he destroyed, he felt the bit of Voldemort's soul expand. He was going to have to kill himself and Voldemort at the same time. He would never marry Ginny, have children, do the things he longed to do. But, as a line in a Muggle movie once pointed out, some people aren't worker bees, some people are renegade killer bees. That was something he and Voldemort had in common. Both of them were born to kill, and born to die. It was just who they were, not that Voldemort was right in killing innocent people, he chose to be evil, but if he hadn't gone to the dark side, he might have been the best Auror ever to come out of Great Britain. Instead, he was hiding, hiding from a kid. He remembered a conversation he and Dumbledore had once had. He had explained to Harry that Tom Riddle had been not only his greatest enemy, but his biggest regret. He was one of the most talented students to ever enter Hogwarts, besides being the most evil. Dumbledore had been sure that he could change him, that all he really needed was a father figure, but he had been wrong.

"Harry...I think we should talk..." Colin Creevey was standing in the doorway, looking very upset about something. "Ginny tried to kill herself again. Fred caught her this time. I put a surveillance charm on her, to make sure she didn't try anything. Harry, I think you should be together, she isn't safe with herself without you. Harry, you know that I'm in love with Ginny too, but I'm man enough to step aside to see her happy. She hasn't smiled since you broke it off with her. This is the third time she's tried it, and next time she might succeed. She loves you so much, Harry. Please...just give her a reason to live." Harry buried his face in his hands. Colin was right.

"Alright. I'll go talk to her now." Harry said, turning on his heel and walking toward the fireplace in the parlor of Number 12, Grimmauld Place. He threw a handful of Floo Powder into the meager flames. He hadn't bothered to try to keep the old place up, it would be vacant again soon, anyway. He took a deep breath and said, "The Burrow" in his low, gruff voice.

He landed with a thud in the Weasleys' fireplace. Once the cloud of dust cleared, he could make out the form of Ginny Weasley. She looked thinner than he'd ever seen her, and she had dark circles around her once vibrant blue-green eyes. Her cheeks were stained with tears. His heart broke with the realization of the damage he had done. She had once been one of the strongest people Harry had ever met, but this waif in front of him was only a mere shadow of what he remembered. He held out his hand and said as gently and steadily as possible, "Ginny, sweetheart, come with me, we need to talk about something."


	4. Chapter 4

Hermione Weasley walked gracefully out of the fireplace of the Burrow, her small daughter still perched on her hip. She took in her surroundings. This house brought back so many memories for her. She set Evvy down, the little girl ran off to play with her cousins in the yard. Hermione walked through to the kitchen and looked out the window. In the small tea garden just outside the window sat a swing. That swing had become her favorite place in the world. It had been the site of so many important moments in her life. It had been where she and Ron had shared their first kiss, and later, where he had asked her to become his wife. They had been married over under the willow by the pond just a few weeks later. Ron hadn't wanted to waste any time what with the war and everything. It had been a good thing, because he had disappeared only days later. She unconsciously fiddled with her wedding ring. It was plain and simple, much like the ceremony. They had only invited family and close friends. It wasn't wise to have a large gathering of wizards around in times like these. It was the sort of thing that attracted unwanted attention. It had been perfect, though. Ron had worn navy blue dress robes, she loved him in blue. It brought out his eyes so well. Hermione sighed. She felt a hand on her shoulder. Mrs. Weasley smiled a warm, yet slightly melancholy smile.

"Don't give up hope, love. He'll come back to you, he promised to always come back. I've never known my Ron to break a promise." Molly always took such good care of her, even though Hermione knew how painful it was for her to think of her youngest son. Even now a tear threatened to escape from the corner of her eye.

"I pray that doesn't change. It just doesn't seem fair that our time together was so short. It's hard to have faith anymore. I'll always long to see him again, but I wonder if it's foolish to expect anything. I mean...Ron's only human. Maybe it was too much to hope that he'd survive that." Hermione tried her hardest to keep her voice steady. Mrs. Weasley reached over and pushed a stray curl out of her eyes.

"Sweetheart, he's so much more than that. He's a man in love. Never doubt the effect of true love on a wizard's strength, dearie. Ron will do everything in his power to see you again, and that's a considerable amount more than you might expect." she said soothingly. Hermione smiled tearfully at her mother-in-law. The doubts were still there, but she felt stronger. It helped, having the people her husband cared about the most there to comfort and support her in his absence.

"Thanks, Molly." She said softly, failing to win the battle to keep her emotions in check. Molly hugged her gently, before walking briskly to the stove to prepare the tea.

"All right, let's move on to more cheerful matters. Help me with the cakes, won't you?" She said in a falsely business-like manner. Hermione had to admire the grace with which Molly handled everything. She only wished she could be that strong.

"Of course, what were you thinking for today? I thought strawberry fruit tarts might be a nice change." Hermione tied an apron around her waist. Mrs.Weasley smiled proudly.

"A woman after my own heart. That would be lovely, dear." Hermione returned the smile before pulling out her wand to start conjuring ingredients. It would have been far less trouble to just conjure up the desserts, but they had a silent agreement about such things. Baking had become a sort of therapy, a release that the two women shared. There was nothing that couldn't be remedied by coating oneself in flour and fruit topping. Quite a bond had developed between them over the past few years. Perhaps it was because they were really the only people who completely understood the pain the other was feeling. Ginny had been quiet and brooding ever since Harry had made it quite clear that they would never have a future together. He didn't understand that he was the only future Ginny had ever wanted. Ginny's pain was very different. She held out no hope for anything anymore. She had grown too thin, and her hair and eyes had lost their luster. Hermione thought of her many suicide attempts. Everyone shared the same fear, that one day she wouldn't be rescued or lose her nerve. That at any moment they could lose her forever.

They rolled and filled and baked their pain and fears away every afternoon. For a few hours every day, there was no war, just sugar and spices and the smell of pies and sweet English tea. They carried the trays out to the large picnic table in the yard. They were met by the sound of the children laughing. Bill and Fleur sat close together, watching their daughter Cloe happily picking lily of the valley by the back fence. She was one of the most beautiful children Hermione had ever seen. She had strawberry blonde hair that fell in long, silky waves, like her mother's. She had the Weasley eyes, deep ocean blue, but her's were large and bright, lined by thick, dark lashes. Her skin was paler than the whitest of porcelains, with a soft peach glow along her cheekbones. She looked like a mythical fairy princess, or an angel. Ginny was now the only unmarried Weasley left of her generation. This probably didn't help her feel less alone. Hermione was at a loss of what to do to ease her friend's heartache. Ginny no longer even attended tea with her family. She seemed to be losing a little more of herself every day. She didn't eat, she didn't sleep, all she did was cry, and stare out her bedroom window from an old wooden rocking chair. Harry also seemed to be absent today. Hermione knew it was too much to hope that they were together. They'd all long since given up on either of them finding happiness. They all knew what it was. Hermione had done research on it, then performed a ridiculously difficult spell that required a potion that took six months to make. It was the soulmate spell. It could only be cast by someone who had found their soulmate, and was willing to sacrifice indefinate amounts of time and energy to complete the spell. The result was this- Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley were soulmates, and without the other, neither was really complete. They couldn't live in peace without each other because they had found each true love and thrown it away. The nobility of the reason did not matter. Love saw no cause greater than its own.

The tea went by as usual, small talk, stories, updates on the children, nothing out of the ordinary. At least, nothing that those present at Weasley family tea would have noticed. But, as the group in the garden revelled in the most peaceful two hours of their day, something happened that hadn't happened in over four years. The old clock in the kitchen sprang to life, and they hands began to move once more.

A/N- Thank you so much to all of my lovely reviewers. You make writing worthwhile.


	5. Chapter 5

Ginny allowed Harry to drag her up to her bedroom. He firmly told her to sit down on the bed and stay silent until he was finished talking. Ginny had never seen Harry like this. He was angry, that much was obvious, but he also seemed to be on the verge of tears and rather hurt.Ginny braced herself, whatever was coming couldn't be good. Harry pushed his hair back roughlt in his frustration. It was getting very long, as he hadn't been maintaining it very well as of late.

"This is the third time, Gin. The third time you've tried to Avada yourself off the face of the Earth. I have one question for you. Why the hell would you do this to me? Why would you do this to your family. They've already lost too many. Percy, your dad, and...and Ron. Why are you doing this to us?" Harry yelled. Ginny felt her temper rise.

"Right Harry, like you really give a shit what happens to me. You don't think I know how it feels to lose family? They were mine too, and who had to kill her own brother, Harry, who? Me. I had to kill Percy to save your sorry ass, but do you care about the people who love you? No, Harry, you don't. You only care about the people you've never even met. Everyone else can die for you, spend their lives praying that you're still alive." Ginny broke down into tears. Harry looked as though someone had run him over with a truck.

"Ginny...what makes you think that I don't care about you? That's why I live my life waiting to die. I can't be with you, not because I don't want to, I'm so fucking in love with you that I can't eat, I can't sleep, all I do is try to think of ways to get around dying so that I can be with you. I wish things were different too, but as soon as I get up the nerve to go find Voldemort, I'm going to die. And I'm doing it for you most of all. I didn't choose my destiny, Ginny. I was born to do this. Once I'm gone, you'll be safe. I'll take Voldemort down with me, and you can move on, marry Dean or Michael or somebody." Harry's broken heart showed all over his face. Ginny looked up into his watery eyes. How she loved those eyes.

"Harry, why do you have to be so morbid? You don't have to die, you can beat him, I have faith in you. Besides, I don't want to marry Dean or Michael, or any other stupid prat. I want to marry you, Harry. I love you. There's no room in my heart for any other man, it's always been you. Since I was a little girl, I've wanted nothing more than to belong to you, those other guys meant nothing to me, they just helped pass the time. Please, Harry, you're my only reason to live, can't you see that?" Ginny choked out the last sentence. Harry's eyes had gone from watery to flooding by now.

"Ginny, I'm a dead man walking. You don't understand. I know where the sixth Horcrux is. Ginny...love...it's me. I'm a Horcrux. I have to kill myself when I go to kill Voldemort, there's no way of avoiding it, within a few months, I'll be dead. That's why I can't marry you, I want it more than anything, to marry you, have kids with you, grow old...everything, but sweetheart, I'm not going to live that long." Harry was leaning against the wall, showing more emotion than anyone had seen from him in years. Ginny sat up, looked at him, and wiped her tears away. This wasn't how things were supposed to be, and it was about time she started making the most of what time was left.

"Then what are you afraid of? Why shouldn't we use what we have? You shouldn't be miserable for the rest of your life. Let's at least enjoy what time we have, Harry. What harm can it possibly do? I don't want to lose you knowing I never had you to begin with." Ginny tried to keep her voice as steady and strong as possible. Harry turned around and walked over to her. He caressed her face gently, and then pulled her in and kissed her fiercely. He pushed her back onto the bed, and pulled himself on top of her, never breaking contact. He broke away for a moment.

"You've always had me" he said breathlessly.

This was the first time in years that Ginny had felt complete. In the next hour, the two acted as though they were trying to make up for all of the romance they had missed along the way. When it was over, Harry reached over and held her hand. He looked into her eyes and Ginny smiled for what seemed like the first time in her life. Harry returned the smile and squeezed her hand a bit tighter. He gazed at her with bittersweet sort of love in his eyes and opened his mouth to speak.

"Ginny Weasley...will you marry me?"

Thanks again to all of you who've been reviewing! You're all awesome.


	6. Chapter 6

After a nice kick in the pants from mclaughlin, and a plea from CrazyPurpleBat…I've decided to finish this, even if it is AU now. I started this story before DH came out, so just…pretend it didn't.

I own running shoes, knitting needles, and a laptop. If I owned Harry Potter, Fred would still be alive…and we'd be married.

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Evvie nearly fell off the swing as her vision went fuzzy and pictures flashed in her mind. A red haired man was lying in a fireplace. He was dirty and bleeding. The floor in front of him was grimy, as if no one had cleaned it in a very long time. The man struggled to speak as he dragged himself across the floor.

" 'Arry!" the voice said thickly, before collapsing.

The garden had gone quiet, although the child hadn't noticed. Her family sat in stunned silence as they waited for the vision to pass. The swing had stopped moving. Everyone was aware, at this point, that Evelyn Weasley was not a normal child. She had been given a strange and sometimes terrible gift. She couldn't control who she saw, or when she saw them, but she could tell when people were in great pain or dying. She usually didn't even know the people she saw, but the man she had seen moments ago was a different story. She had never met him, but she had seen his face every day on the mantle. He looked different now. She started to panic.

"Daddy…I saw Daddy! Mummy, in the fireplace!" her mother rushed to her side. Evvie had told her for weeks that she heard her father's voice in her dreams. She hadn't dared to hope that it was real. Even though her daughter had been born with the Sight, Hermione had trouble accepting anything that wasn't concrete. She had been afraid to open her heart to the possibility that her husband was coming home to her. She had always hoped, but Hermione knew better than anyone that hope and faith were two very different things.

"Sweetheart, what did you see exactly?" Hermione kept her voice level. It wouldn't do to get all worked up while trying to calm a small child. "It's all right, tell Mummy what you saw." Evvie's eyes were wide and frightful.

"Daddy's dirty. He hurts. In the fireplace." Hermione tried not to show her own terror. She didn't know how to extract useful information from a toddler, even her own. Harry walked up behind her.

"What's going on, 'Mione?" She turned around, conveying a wealth of information with her controlled gaze. She knew Harry would know exactly how urgent she felt, even if no one else saw it. She told him what had happened in a voice just above a whisper. He felt himself growing as nervous as everyone else. A thought occurred to him. Hermione wasn't going to like it. He didn't like it.

"We could try _legilimens."_ Hermione looked aghast. It was dangerous to attempt on a child so young. Harry softened his gaze and voice as much as possible.

"Hermione, it might be our only chance. If Evvie actually saw Ron, then he might not have much time. You know that most of the people she sees are close to death. It's your choice, obviously. I don't want to pressure you, but we could be wasting our chance to get him back." Hermione knew that Harry wasn't being cruel. She realized that he was right. She was torn between shielding her child and saving her husband. She looked into Harry's bright green eyes, seeing a mixture of fear and compassion burning in them. She wished that she could do it, but she had no experience with this kind of spell. It was one of those moments that she hated most in life. Hermione didn't have the answer, wasn't in control. She whimpered softly.

"Harry, be gentle, please. Don't push her too far." Harry squeezed her hand for a moment before raising his wand and whispering the incantation. Evvie didn't fight him at all. She eagerly pushed the images at him, wanting to share what she had seen. He could feel how frightened she was by reliving it. He pulled back into his own mind, a feeling like cold water rushing over him as he became aware of his own body again.

"It was him. He's at Grimmauld Place." Hermione's eyes went from her daughter, who was now clinging to her shirt, to her best friend. Was it a trap? It couldn't be…who else knew how to get past the wards? Almost everyone who had been told the location was sitting fifty feet away. More than that, the floo was enchanted to only allow five people entry. Harry, Hermione, and Ginny were here. Neville was abroad. That left only one.

"I'll have Molly watch Evvie. You assemble whoever you think we need." Hermione said breathlessly. Harry watched as Molly's face whitened with what Hermione was telling her. He approached Fred, George, Bill, and Fleur. They agreed, immediately abandoning their seats. He tensed as Ginny approached. He knew precisely the argument they were about to have. By the look in her tired eyes, so did she.

"Harry, you bloody wanker, don't you dare tell me I'm sitting this out. He's my brother. If he's injured, you'll need a decent healer. If Mum's here with Evvie, I'm the next best thing." Harry wanted to tell her no. He wanted to say that she was too important to risk, and all the other lines he knew she was tired of hearing. He couldn't. For that moment, there was a fire in Ginny's eyes he hadn't seen in years. For a moment, she was the girl from the Department of Mysteries.

"Ok, Gin. Just…don't do anything that will get you hurt." She seemed surprised, but recovered with a wry smile.

"Sure thing, Harry. I won't do anything stupid like face a giant snake without a wand, or hunt down a convict who supposedly wants to kill me, or sacrifi-" Harry kissed her gently, unnaturally happy to be mocked. She was showing signs of life again. He smiled at her.

"I love you, Ginny."

They apparated half a block from where Number Twelve was hidden. Hermione was anxious, to say the least, but still insisted they be cautious. As the house materialized, she felt her heart racing. She allowed herself, for the first time in two years, to fully remember him. She could still feel his warm hands on her skin, the way it felt to look into his eyes and know he was alive and whole. She could almost smell him, the way he smelled the night before the attack. It was the same incredible scent she experienced when she had brewed Amortentia in Potions. He smelled like home. She stopped herself as she felt the tears prickling her eyes. She needed to focus.

They crept into the entrance hall of the dingy house. Hermione performed a spell to detect the presence of other humans. They weren't alone. There were two other people in the house. She whispered to Harry, who held up two fingers, signaling to the others. Both of the people she detected were in the kitchen, it seemed, by the fireplace. She took the lead as quickly as she dared. As they rounded the last corner leading to their destination, Hermione held her wand out, ready to attack.

There was a tall, ginger-haired man lying, unconscious, on the floor. Stooped over him, using his robes to stem the flow of blood, was one of the last people they expected to see in that situation. Draco Malfoy was trying, in vain, to help the prone figure. He looked up with fear in his eyes.

"Don't attack. I tried to smuggle him out, but the Lestranges caught us. " Hermione started to rush forward, but Harry threw his arm out. He gestured to Fred and George, who came to stand on either side.

"Seeing as we're not sure if it's really you, or whether we'd trust you anyway, you'll have to be restrained till we do. _Petrificus Totalis_." The twins moved the rigid form to the table, conjuring cords and checking for a wand. They didn't find one. Harry looked down at the face of his rival. "Sorry 'bout this, just can't be too careful."

Harry and Bill went to the man on the floor, rolling him over. Under a scraggly beard and three years of grime, he could distinguish the familiar features of his best friend. He was thin, and he seemed to have a bad head injury, but he was breathing. Hermione threw herself down on him, weeping openly.

"Ron! Wake up…please. Please wake up." Harry gently pried her away from him so that Ginny and Fleur could begin treating his wounds. Bill stood guard at the door. Harry addressed the twins.

"He's going to need to go to St. Mungo's. He needs proper treatment, and we'll need to make sure it's really him before taking him home. Just in case it's a trap." They nodded, exhibiting signs of shock. Once Ron was ready to move, they carried him outside, floating Malfoy along with them. They apparated to the hospital, where they parted ways. George and Bill took Malfoy to Shell Cottage, where they would interrogate him. Fleur went back to the Burrow, to tell the others, and to send Charlie as backup for the interrogation.

As they watched Ron being rushed through double doors, into the emergency unit, Hermione couldn't stop the tears flowing. Harry was holding her tightly. It helped to know how much he cared, but Hermione wanted nothing more than to break free of him and chase after the man she loved. Exhausted, scared, and overwhelmed, she just burrowed deeper into his chest, crying for all she'd lost, and for what she might have found again.


	7. Chapter 7

Thank you to firedivine and Stormbringer the Mist Wolf for adding this to their faves. And, to the latter and mclaughlin for reviewing. I'm going to try to update quickly, since some of you have been waiting half a decade…literally.

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The sun was starting to set, and Molly Weasley hadn't moved from her place in the garden. Charlie had brought her some tea nearly an hour ago, but it sat untouched. Normally, Molly would be bustling around, spearheading some project to keep her mind off of the situation at hand. This was different. They had never come this close to finding him. In fact, they had never been close at all. It had been as if he'd just evaporated. They had a lead, and Molly was electrified by the possibilities. On one hand, she could have her baby back tonight, safe and among those who loved him most. On the other, it could be a cruel trap, a simple way to eliminate the Chosen One and half the Order at once. It was that last possibility that had her riveted to the spot.

All but one of her remaining children had gone to Grimmauld Place. Also with them were two of her daughters in law, one of whom was more like a daughter to her by this time. A tear threatened to escape. She had lost so much to Voldemort. Her brothers had fallen thirty years before, her husband the previous summer. The most painful loss was that of her son, Percy, whom she'd lost in the worst way possible. He had gotten too close to the wrong people, put his faith in twisted men. In the end, he'd been so mislead that he believed that killing Harry himself would put an end to the war. He had nearly succeeded. His own sister, her Ginny, had been the only person there to stop him. A choked whimper escaped her. She had come so close to losing her as well, several times. Ginny was a shell of a person. Her spirit destroyed by what she'd been forced to do, and by loving the boy she'd done it for.

Molly knew that Harry was hopelessly in love with her only daughter, but thought the best way to protect her was to distance himself. What no one truly understood was that Ginny was her own worst enemy. She was passionate, and incredibly powerful, and so lost in her feelings for Harry Potter that she couldn't find her way out of a broken heart. As a mother, she knew she should hate him. It was, however, a rather impossible thing to do. He'd never meant to hurt any of them. It was Voldemort. Her eyes narrowed at the thought of him. One sadistic bastard had ruined the lives of thousands, torn apart countless families. Was it really possible that one skinny little boy, though she supposed he wasn't a boy anymore, could stop it all?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft 'pop' just outside the protective barriers. A sheet of platinum hair swung around the shoulders of a small woman, who ran as fast as she could toward the house. Molly's blood froze in her veins.

"Zey 'ave found 'im! 'e is at zee 'ospital. Zey are not sure if eet is an eemposter, but zey think eet is 'im!" Molly embraced Fleur, crying out. Fleur's youthful face was flushed from running. She beamed at her mother-in-law. Fleur explained hurriedly about Malfoy as they walked to the house. Fleur was in a hurry to find Charlie, Molly had found her purpose again. Sandwiches. They would need sandwiches. She rushed around the kitchen like a madwoman. The room was a flurry of bread and cheese, bottles of butterbeer and pickles. She shoved two baskets of food into waiting arms. One large one went to Fleur. A smaller one went with Charlie. She had included a sandwich for Malfoy, on the condition that he had been truthful. Charlie laughed at this, ruffling his mother's hair good-naturedly. As the other two disapparated, Molly caught her breath. She was hanging her apron on its hoot when she noticed something very strange, indeed. The old clock had come to life again. Many of the hands pointed to "Hospital", while Ron's moved back and forth between three locations, making it unclear whether he was travelling, in the hospital, or in mortal peril. Her eyes came to rest on one hand, pointing straight at the dreaded twelve o'clock position. It was her own. She turned around slowly, wand out. An unwelcome figure stood in her doorway, wand pointed directly at her.


	8. Chapter 8

Thank you to everyone who reviewed and faved! I'm amazed at how many people seem to enjoy this story. It means a lot that so many of you are sticking with this fic after all this time.

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Ron pushed against the walls of his mind, trying to escape the nightmares that replayed themselves in front of his glassy eyes. He knew he was in the hospital. He knew he'd been taken there after Draco Malfoy finally turned traitor and broke him out. It had been a strange three years. After his capture, he had been held in a dark cell. It was damp, and filthy, and so was he. Faceless men tortured him daily for information, threatening his family, his friends, anyone. Hermione may have had the brains, and Harry the nerve, but Ron had always had the imagination. He was also much smarter than anyone had thought he was. He gave them a series of very well-thought-out lies, lies that took months to uncover. It was all strategy, and Ron was a very good strategist.

He was also motivated. He had people who needed him. His brothers, his mum, Ginny, Harry…and Hermione needed him. His sweet, beautiful wife-he wasn't even used to calling her that. She was alone. She would have his family, but he knew what he meant to her. He knew that all the worth he never saw in himself, she did. She had loved him enough to marry him at eighteen, when he had no money or skills (though she vehemently denied the latter). She had told him that she only wanted him, forever. No matter what, he would give her that…well, unless he died. So, Ron made a decision to live. He had led the Death Eaters astray for years, telling them stories that bordered on the ridiculous.

The questioning began the day after his arrival. He had known what was coming, so he'd stayed up all night making the framework for a web of deceit that would run the devil bow-legged. He thought of what Voldemort would want more than Harry…immortality, of course. Everyone wants that, and everyone already knew he was after it. So, presumably, what he feared most was death…or defeat. So the logical conclusion was to make his opponent invincible. He needed to believe that Harry was seeking it too. It was easy once he got going. For over two months, he said nothing. He couldn't reveal anything too quickly. He just conditioned himself to select what people would see when they probed into his mind. It was as difficult as Harry said it was, but he got better at it. He carefully planned when his mind would "slip". When September arrived, and with it Hermione's birthday (he thought it an appropriate gift), he carefully baited the questioner with the ease of someone who grew up with six siblings (he'd have to thank Fred and George). Before the cloaked figure had even entered his cell, he spoke.

"Don't you scum realize I'm not telling you anything?" The man did not reply. He went through the same routine that all the others had. Soundproofing, locking, cloaking the room with a strange black curtain. Ron nearly smirked. He was, after all, a high-profile prisoner. He painted the picture in his mind, carefully layering it behind the wall he always built up. His mental protection had a flaw today, quite intentionally. Anyone with any skill would find it, and break through it. It would present itself as concern for his father and mother. It was the most obvious and believable chink he could put in his armor that wouldn't result in the exploitation of the person he was most worried about. Beneath that he put fear. Fear that Voldemort would find what Harry was looking for.

Ron was not dishonest by nature, so it took a great deal of effort to stop the truth from rising above the façade. Harry was not searching for anything at the moment, except the Horcruxes. But he focused on a weapon. He hadn't decided what that would be yet, but he had an idea. The masked Death Eater did not speak to him, just pointed his wand at Ron's forehead and, in what could barely pass as a whisper, said the spell that would begin the interrogation.

"_Legilimens." _Ron fought back respectably. He couldn't give in too easily. Once he was giving in more than defending, and he knew his tormentor thought he was on the ropes, he flashed the first image. It was of his mother crying. Second- his father holding back an attack on the Burrow…alone. Third- the Dark Mark over the house. He let the fear and pain wash over him, and pushed back against the intrusion. After half a minute, he gave in. Ron showed a glimpse of Harry in the library at Hogwarts, surrounded by thick volumes, then an image of a map of the world. Harry connected a pin located in London to one in northern Scotland, then to France. He then pushed his attacker out with all his might. He was dizzy from the effort. He hadn't eaten in days. The figure stood, seeming satisfied with the progress. Ron was careful to look properly terrified and enraged.

"Bloody, sodding filth." Ron muttered. The wizard walked toward him and set a small parcel down. Inside was a Pumpkin Pasty. A neatly-written note read, _It isn't poisoned or anything ._Ron stared at the food, weighing the risks. He waited for the Death Eater left before breaking off a crumb and placing it in front of one of the rats that had taken up residence in his cell.

"Better you than me, mate. Sorry." He said, as the rat ate. After he was quite sure the rat was going to be ok, he dared a small bite. It was heaven. His stomach growled in protest when it was gone. Ron curled up on the threadbare blanket in the corner, imagining the small cottage he had built for Hermione, and the soft bed inside it. He imagined her warm body next to his, and for a moment, he wasn't so cold anymore.


	9. Chapter 9

Harry held Ginny's hand in the waiting room of St. Mungo's. Her skin was so cold, he couldn't believe she wasn't shivering. Fred's face was strangely unreadable. He kept glancing at Hermione, who was pacing the room so quickly it was a wonder she wasn't out of breath. She kept wringing her hands and whispering under her breath. Harry tried to quiet her unease.

"'Mione, there's a bookshelf over here." Harry pulled a book that contained photographs of house elves dressed as flowers, insects, and furry woodland creatures. He knew from experience that the best way to distract Hermione was to make her angry. He set it casually on the shelf as she turned to face him.

"Oh. I hadn't noticed." Her voice was quite small. She looked more terrified than Harry had ever seen her. Knowing that Hermione, of all people, had overlooked the presence of books elevated his own sense of anxiety. He met Ginny's eye. She waited a few moments before speaking, stretching as she did so.

"Hermione, will you come with me to get a cup of tea? I get lost in here by myself." Ginny's acting was beautiful. Hermione eyed her suspiciously, nonetheless.

"Why can't Harry or Fred take you?" She asked. Harry tensed slightly.

"Well, Harry attracts an awful lot of attention. If he's seen by the wrong person, the room will be packed with reporters in two minutes. " Harry tried not to smile too much. She was brilliant, the thought, as she continued. "As for this bugger, he'll get me lost intentionally. Probably lock me in a broom cupboard." Fred smiled softly at Ginny from behind Hermione. It seemed Fred hadn't been insulted by Ginny in awhile either. Hermione considered her carefully, hesitant to take the bait.

"I should stay here..in case something…in case they know anything." Weakness replaced suspicion in her soft features. She'd never been fragile, except when it came to Ron. Harry had rarely seen her cry that it wasn't about him. He stood.

"Go with Gin. I could use a cup as well. Fred?" He nodded. "The Healers said it would be hours. If anything happens, I'll send my Patronus." Hermione looked slightly mollified.

"Alright. Some biscuits might be nice." She gathered her small bag from the chair it was resting on.

The two young women walked into the corridor and to the magical elevator. They didn't speak for a long while.

"Did you hear Luna is coming back?" Ginny tried. "Word has it she's to receive some sort of award. She found evidence of some prehistoric thing that could be the ancestor of one of those mad things she used to talk about." Hermione snorted involuntarily.

"Don't tell me, she found fossilized wrackspurts in the head of pterodactyl? " Ginny chuckled good-naturedly.

"Probably." Hermione sighed in response. "You know, 'Mione, everything will work out. Ron's a fighter. He has to be. He managed to snatch you from the clutches of Cormac McLaggen."

"Yes, and you've no idea how difficult it was for him. I imagine I'd have run away with Grawp if it got me away from that slime." Ginny laughed. It still sounded strange, even to herself.

After getting the tea, Ginny and Hermione made their way back toward the waiting room, silent once more. A clatter behind them announced a stretcher being pushed quickly down the hallway. Several Mediwizards were trying to control the bleeding of a witch who seemed to have lost most of her skin. Hermione's face screwed up in disgust. Ginny recognized one of the junior healers as Katie Bell.

"What happened?" She asked, trying to keep pace. Katie just looked back at her with wide eyes. A voice sounded behind them.

"Never you mind, dear. Those old, wealthy families have so much gold…they just can't seem to stay on the right side of a potato peeler. They'll fix her right up, I imagine." Ginny looked at her mother with a combination of disgust and shock.

"Mum, who was that? " she asked warily.

"Bellatrix Lestrange." Molly snarled slightly as she said the name. Ginny saw for the first time that Evvie was clinging to her Grandmother's hand. Hermione was as white as a sheet.

"Sweetheart, did you see what happened to that lady?" Hermione's voice quavered a bit. Evvie put on a very serious face.

"No, Mummy, but Grandma says that that is why you _never_ play with knives. That _Strange_ lady must not have listened very well." Ginny noticed the very Hermione-ish way she said it. Hermione glanced back at Molly before being dragged down the hall to the elevator by her daughter.

"Mum, please don't tell me you took a peeler to Bellatrix Lestrange." Ginny looked at her mother, whose eyes were wild.

"All right, dear."

"What happened?" Ginny asked again, trembling a bit.

"We'll discuss it once everyone is together." Molly answered. Ginny was having difficulty closing her mouth. "I won't lose any more of you." She finished, pulling her small, plump form to its full height. "No more."

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Sooo…here's a short one, just so you know I haven't abandoned you.


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